Daily Update: SmackDown ratings, Rhea Ripley, Tom Hannifan

Daily Update

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Join us in Las Vegas for our annual F4W Convention

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter:

Highlights include:

*Where the C.M. Punk situation with AEW stands.

*Update with more details on the proposed new AEW television show and if it happens, probable time slot, potential issues, and how the roster will be handled.

*Update on AEW at Wembley Stadium, different standards of numbers to break, ticket pricing, AEW’s goals for the show, signups and how that compares to Clash at the Castle and what it means.

*Sanada wins the IWGP title after a character change and the questions that opens up, plus notes on the next several months of New Japan major events, including G-1, Dominion and Forbidden Door.

*Full coverage of the Sakura Genesis show

*Full coverage of UFC 287, what happens next for the headliners, business note and fight-by-fight coverage

*Major article on the life and career of The Sheepherders/Kiwis/Bushwhackers with the death of Butch Miller. We follow Miller’s life both in and out of wrestling, the territory days, fan attacks, crazy angles, their days of bloodbath matches and the 180 at the end of their careers that made them the most famous. We go through everywhere from New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Oregon, Southwest, Stampede, Mid South, Puerto Rico and of course WWE, the politics, the craziness and Miller’s later fights for his life.

*WWE attempts once again to get the MLW lawsuit thrown out. A look at their response and strategy in the case

*The most detailed look at the ratings for all the pro wrestling shows of the past week, what the ratings mean, placings, yearly trends, and how different segments did.

*Update on the Champion of Champions tournament.

*The celebrity angle that fell apart in so many ways and a look at why.

*Notes on the next season of Dark Side of the ring.

*NWA PPV coverage.

*The story behind Bob Backlund becoming WWF champion.

*How wrestling ratings will be affected the next two months and why

*Lots of injury updates.

*International TV ratings and streaming numbers.

*Ticket sales for all the upcoming WWE & AEW events.

*UFC Hall of Fame notes.

*Lots of new major UFC fights.

*Update on Vince McMahon and creative.

*Dana White talks WWE/UFC merger

This Week’s Retro Observer Newsletter:

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Saturday Update

WWE

  • Against the NBA play-in tournament, last night’s SmackDown averaged 2.135 million viewers in the fast national ratings, down from last week’s fast national average of 2.291 million. The rating in the 18-49 demo was a 0.49 in the first hour and a 0.56 in the second.
  • Rhea Ripley announced the passing of her grandmother: “Thursday night I lost one of my favorite people. Nonna, Im going to miss your strong loving hugs & your little sassy cheeky attitude. It’s so hard saying goodbye, but being able to see you again in Feb was the highlight of my year. I miss you & I love you with all my heart.”
  • This week marked the seven-year anniversary of Bianca Belair signing with WWE.
  • Roxanne Perez celebrated one year in NXT:
          • -first ever womens breakout tournament winner
          • -first ever iron survivor winner
          • -NXT womens tag team champion
          • -NXT womens champion
          • -Smackdown debut
          • -Royal Rumble debut
          • Today marks my 1 year in NXT and I’m seriously so so so extremely grateful for all of these opportunities and everything I’ve been able to accomplish so far I could cry. I can’t wait to continue this journey w/ you guys & experience so many more magical moments. Thx for believing in me
  • Bad Bunny made history on Friday night, becoming the first Latino performer to headline the Coachella music festival.
  • The Usos, Sonya Deville & Chelsea Green, and Xavier Woods appeared on The SmackDown LowDown.
  • WWE’s YouTube channel uploaded the following matches: Sami Zayn vs. Stardust (Roadblock 2016), Triple H vs. Sheamus street fight (Extreme Rules 2010), and The Usos vs. Bobby Roode & Chad Gable (April 15, 2019 Raw).

AEW/Other Wrestling

  • On Twitter yesterday, Brandon Cutler tweeted and then deleted a response to a Deadspin article about CM Punk. Cutler wrote: “Someone gets it.” The title of the article was “CM Punk is gaslighting AEW into a return.”
  • Kenny Omega tweeted: “Since everyone is asking, I’ll spill the beans… I have a huge problem with certain people on our roster – And they happen to be members of the Blackpool Combat Club! I’ll speak more about it Wednesday on #AEWDynamite”
  • Dax Harwood posted a tweet about negative messages he’s received on social media: “Woke up this morning reading a lot of bad stuff about me. I’m not sure why. Either way, hoping I lose my job, and my means of providing for my family ain’t it, though. It’s sad that everyday i have to remind myself social media isn’t real life.”
  • Cash Wheeler wrote:
          • Dax is one of the best people you could ever meet. Passionate about wrestling and family. Protective over his friends, especially when people don’t know everything. He’s not afraid to speak up, and not do it anonymously. Honest to a fault.
          • We all need to do better to fix this situation. Everyone involved. No fingers pointed. No one is completely innocent. I respect everyone involved and want the best for AEW. I am tired of reading negativity from both sides, fans and wrestlers. Real life is more important. Enough.
  • Tom Hannifan (former WWE commentator Tom Phillips) spoke to the Sporting News about re-signing with Impact Wrestling:
          • The IMPACT family embraced me from my first day on the job. I needed that more than most people will ever realize. I decided to stay because I felt wanted, respected, and appreciated. This company gave me an opportunity to prove myself all over again, so now my goal is to repay that generosity with all my effort.
          • I also decided to stay because I see where IMPACT and Anthem as a whole is headed, and I want to be a part of that journey. This company lost a lot of critical pieces with the rise of AEW, and like many businesses, was slowed by the pandemic. IMPACT has had time to heal, rebuild, and grow, and I believe our current television product is outstanding. It rivals or exceeds some of the best the pro wrestling industry has to offer. There is so much more we can achieve. And the truth many wrestling fans need to grasp is this: when IMPACT Wrestling is live, we don’t miss.
  • Scott D’Amore told the Sporting News about Impact Wrestling’s willingness to work with other promotions:
          • We have long said, IMPACT Wrestling is open for business and willing to work with any pro wrestling company if the partnership is mutually beneficial. We have worked with AEW, ROH, Pro Wrestling Noah. NJPW, and even WWE, which no one thought would ever happen!
          • We stand by our word and put our money where our mouth is. We truly believe when companies put their differences aside and work together, it’s a win-win-win situation. Both companies and most importantly the fans are all better off for it.
  • Andrade El Idolo, who underwent surgery for a torn pec in November, tweeted that he’s able to do push-ups for the first time in months: “After 8 months, this week I was able to do push ups again, I feel like I’ve broken a record, you don’t know how good it feels.”
  • Revolution Pro Wrestling confirmed that they’ll be holding an event the day before All in: “Yes 100%. We’re exploring our options but there will definitely be a show on the Saturday which is exactly 11 years TO THE DAY that we became a real thing. So watch this space. We hope we can add value for travelling fans and help make this a celebratory weekend for all things pro wrestling!”
  • Dalton Castle was the guest on AEW Unrestricted this week.
  • Chris Van Vliet interviewed Renee Paquette.